Fresh Start
by Dana1
Summary: The Shield are no longer together. Dean's moved on with his life but he's always wondered what happened to the Shield, and more importantly, what happened to 2014? FINAL FIC IN THE CRACKS IN THE SHIELD SERIES
1. Hanging Out at Performance Center

Title: Fresh Start

Rating: PGish

Warnings: You know wrestling violence.

Summary: The Shield are no longer together. Dean's ready for a fresh start. He just never thought he'd be the one back in the company.

Author's note: FINAL fic of the Cracks in the Shield series. As the summary indicates, the Shield completely shatters in The Shield's Final Stand. Takes place about a year later.

Dean sat on the top turnbuckle watching the action in the middle of the ring. Sami Zayn was working with Zack Ryder. Dean figured this was at the moment the safest place to be in the ring. He was sure Dr. Andrews would kill him if he even knew he was sitting on a top turnbuckle. He had gone a year without rebreaking his ankle.

"Good," Matt Bloom, who wrestled for the WWE as Prince Albert and later Lord Tensai called from where he was standing on the other side of the ring. "I think you're both ready to be back on the main roster. What do you think Ambrose?"

"Looked good to me," he said hopping down off of the top rope and walking over to them. "I'm glad I don't have to wrestle you Sami," he joked. He knew Sami quite well from the indy circuit and knew Zack Ryder from both of their days on the main roster.

"What about me?" Zack asked.

"Didn't the Shield used to beat you?" Dean asked.

"Nah I think you're forgetting things again. We totally used to beat you guys!"

"Hey don't go blaming my memory," Dean shot back jokingly. "I remember quite well we used to beat you on house shows. It was before 2013."

"Nope." Zack shook his head laughing.

"Man if I wasn't retired I'd kick your butt in the ring right now!" He said getting in the face of the Long Islander.

"My moneys on Ambrose," Enzo Amore called from the second ring where he and his tag partner Colin "Big Cass" Cassidy were working on a few moves.

"Mine too!" Cass called back.

"Oh come on," Zack said looking around at everyone in the Performance Center. "Doesn't anyone think I could beat Ambrose?"

"Nope!" Came the reply.

Zack sighed melodramatically before grabbing his water bottle.

Dean exited the ring and took a seat in a chair in the front row. He took his cellphone out and sent a text message to his girlfriend Renee Young. He had gotten to know her the few times he had been at a WWE show making sure the called up wrestlers made it through their first night. Life was perfect.

He just wished he remembered anything from 2014.


	2. Royal Rumble 2016

Dean stood backstage with Sami as he drew his number for the Royal Rumble. Sami was returning to the main roster after getting injured. Shane McMahon had called him up to take part in the Royal Rumble and be a part of the main roster.

"How are you doing Dean?" Dusty asked as Sami pulled a number from the hopper.

"Good though I wish that I was competing tonight. Dr. Andrews laughed when I even tried to ask."

"Dean you broke your ankle four times in 2014. I don't know how you're cleared to walk," Shane said as he made a note of Sami's number.

"True," Dean said with a sigh. He had no idea how he had possibly broken his ankle that many times but apparently, he had bad luck in the ring from what people had told him. "I guess I'll just have to live vicariously through the NXT roster."

"Hey we're always glad to have you if you ever decide to work in production." Shane said. "Hey Roman," Shane said.

Dean looked up to see Roman Reigns standing there looking at Dean with a shocked expression. Somehow Dean hadn't run into Seth or Roman any of the times he was on the road with the main roster. He had been told Seth had gone back to Ring of Honor and Roman had taken some time off to be with his wife and daughter. He guessed Roman was now back on the main roster.

"I'll come back," Roman said and started to leave the room.

"Wait Roman," Dean started to say.

"No I gotta go," he said and left the room.

Dean shook his head. He remembered at the end of 2013 how he and Roman argued all the time. He never really thought that would come between them. They argued but it was forgotten. They were too much alike. They were looking for the same goals, and they both were stubborn. He supposed with the amount of times he had broken his ankle; he really was the weakest link of the Shield.

"I better get ready," Sami said and walked out of the room. Dean followed him.

"Dean!" a voice called.

Dean turned around to see someone he didn't know had been signed by WWE, much less knew who he was. Sure, he had been in TNA for one night but he never met AJ Styles. "Hi, AJ, right?"

"Yeah," AJ said looking confused. "I guess we didn't really talk that much. I just was surprised to see you here. Wendy…"

"AJ!" Roman called coming up to them. "I need to talk to you about something," he said and pulled AJ away from Dean.

"It was good seeing you Dean," AJ called as he and Roman walked away.

He started to see why he probably would have stopped being friends with Roman. Who did that?

DDD

Notes: Sorry for the short chapters. I'm just showing how things are. I haven't decided on who wins Royal Rumble 2016 yet in this fic since Hunter's gone. Seth's currently back in ROH or is he back in WWE? Still working on the plot of this fic.


	3. Friendships

Notes: I'm going with a winner I wouldn't have wanted to see if I was watching it, but someone that makes sense plot wise.

Cesaro looked up as Sami Zayn walked into the locker room. He was glad to see Sami back on the main roster. He came so close to being called up when he had become injured. "Hey Sami," he said going up to him and stuck his hand out for a handshake.

"Hey Cesaro," he said before finding an empty locker on the other side of the room. He started to get changed when Dean came into the room.

"Hey!" Dean called as he walked up to Cesaro. They exchanged a side hug before Dean sat down on the bench next to him. "Renee and I are going out to dinner after the show. You should call Sara and join us."

"I'll call her and see if she's available." Cesaro said. He wasn't dating the Assistant Head Coach of NXT Sara Del Rey, but they were good friends from when they were Kings of Wrestling with Chris Hero. "I didn't know you were going to be here tonight."

"Making sure Sami is ready for tonight. I also live here," he reminded him with a grin on his face.

"True," Cesaro said with a smile. "I forget sometimes that you work at NXT as Talent Relations. I heard…" he stopped when he felt someone staring at him. He turned around to see Roman Reigns glaring at him. he ignored him. "They are thinking of signing Bobby Roode."

"Yeah. Though I don't help with that stuff."

Roman was now watching Dean.

"Let's go get some catering and catch up," Cesaro said glaring back at Reigns who moved away. Dean was oblivious as he was busy texting someone.

Dean stood up and finally noticed Roman was in the locker room. He locked eyes with the Samoan for a moment before walking out of the locker room.

Cesaro started to follow but Roman grabbed his arm.

"What do you think you're doing?" Roman demanded.

"I'm going to get something to eat with my friend Dean," Cesaro said not holding back a smirk.

"He's not your friend!"

"Actually we've been friends for about a year now. I was the one who was there to take care of him when he had bronchitis and had no idea what happened to 2014."

Roman glowered at him. "You know why I couldn't." The locker room started to fill, so he didn't say anything. He went back to getting ready for the night.

DDD

Seth Rollins stood in the locker room of Ring of Honor. It was a regular show and not a TV taping or PPV. He didn't want to admit it out loud but he was glad to be back in Ring of Honor. This time he didn't have to worry about someone trying to get him back into WWE. He didn't have to look over his shoulder afraid that Evolution or the Wyatts were nearby. The only thing that kept it from being perfect was that Dean and Roman weren't there.

He watched as The Motor City Machineguns came into the locker room after a match with the Briscoes. "Good match guys."

"Thanks Seth," Alex Shelly said as he grabbed a bottled water out of his bag. "You ready for your match with Jay Lethal?"

"Yeah," Seth said with a sigh. "I just hope the Bullet Club doesn't interfere again. They are determined to prove they are better than the Shield, and I'm the only Shield member here." He taped up his fists.

"We've got your back if they do interfere," Chris Sabin said as he sat down next to his tag partner. "Especially if Young Bucks show up."

The Machineguns hadn't been back together in Ring of Honor very long but they were making names for themselves fighting Young Bucks and Addiction.

Seth's phone started to ring.

He saw it was Roman so he walked out of the locker room and found a secluded part of the building. "Hey Roman." He answered.

"Dean's here," Roman answered. "Apparently, he works in NXT. He and Cesaro are suddenly buddies."

"Roman," Seth said with a sigh. "We kind of abandoned him remember? Doesn't surprise me that he's friends with Cesaro. You heard the talk of the locker room before we both left. How Cesaro took care of Dean when he was sick and how poor Dean has amnesia. We did what we had to, to keep him safe."

"But he's not supposed to be friends with him! He was part of Evolution," he reminded him.

"Cesaro was ready to quit Evolution before they disbanded. Maybe he's changed? Look I've got a match with Jay Lethal and you've got a Rumble to win. Leave Dean alone. From what I've heard he's never been happier."

"But Seth…"

"I've gotta go," he said and hung up. He didn't want to admit to Roman that he was just as angry about this situation. They had to get past it.

He just didn't want to know what would happen if Bray's hypnosis wore off how Dean would react. It'd been a year. Maybe it never would.


	4. Hatching a Plan

Notes: Flashback is in italics.

 _Heyman held the motel room door open so that Cesaro could carry Dean in. Heyman made sure no one had spotted him as he closed the door. Cesaro set Dean down on the bed, and went into the bathroom to get a wet wash cloth for his head._

" _What exactly is your plan," Heyman said as he sat down on the arm chair in the room. "You volunteered to take him in."_

" _Make sure he gets well and also fill in all the blank spots he'll have when he wakes up. I'll need your help Paul. I need your help with coming up with a cover story. You brought the Shield in to WWE to protect Punk's title reign. He and I barely had any interaction in 2013."_

" _I guess I can help you with that," Heyman said. "First thing he needs to know is the Shield broke up because of their constant arguing. He should believe that since the Shield was always arguing at the end of 2013. Maybe even say it's because he was constantly getting injured." Heyman said nodding at Dean's casted foot._

 _Cesaro sighed as he placed the wet wash cloth on Dean's forehead. "They don't even know what they did."_

 _Heyman chuckled. "No. They didn't. We need to talk about where you go from here now that you're out of Evolution."_

 _Dean groaned as he woke up. He felt terrible and had no idea why. Last thing he remembered was going partying with Seth on New Year's Eve. Roman had gone home to be with his girlfriend and daughter. He decided he got more drunk then he thought. He opened his eyes and saw Antonio Cesaro standing above him._

" _What's going on?" He asked as he sat up in bed. That's when he saw Paul Heyman sitting in an arm chair writing something on paper. "How'd I get here?"_

" _Lay down Dean." Cesaro said. "You're sick." He went to the bathroom to get a glass of water and a couple of Dean's antibiotics. He came back into the room and helped Dean take the medicine._

" _Where's Seth?" Dean asked as he lay back in bed. He looked down at his foot. "What happened to my foot?"_

" _Seth's not here and you broke your ankle." Cesaro said._

" _Did I party too hard last night? I don't remember breaking my ankle."_

 _Heyman came up to him. "You broke your ankle a couple of weeks ago in the ring. Again, might I add." He said with a sigh._

" _A couple of weeks ago? I don't remember. I think I'd remember that." He said trying to sit up again. "Where's Seth?" he asked again._

" _I don't know," Cesaro said, "probably home. You usually don't care what he's doing."_

" _But we were partying last night. This is our hotel room, right?"_

" _No," Cesaro said, "this is our hotel room. We usually share a room when we are on the road. I think Seth's sharing with Miz or something. I don't know I don't keep track."_

" _But why would he share with Miz and not me or Roman?"_

" _You really did hurt your head tonight." Heyman said. "Go back to sleep and I'm sure all will make sense in the morning." He used the same voice he used on his kids to get them to go back to sleep._

 _Dean was getting kind of tired and did go back to sleep._

" _This is not going to work." Cesaro said as soon as Dean was back to sleep._

" _We better come up with a better story. In fact, I have an idea…"_

 _DDD_

Dean sat in the back and watched as Roman Reigns win the Royal Rumble. He was disappointed that Cesaro was the last one eliminated in the match. The fans sounded disappointed by it too. He turned to Sami who was sitting next to him in front of one of the monitors.

"I'm going to go congratulate Roman," Dean said as he stood up. He stood at the Gorilla position waiting for Roman to go through the curtains. "Hey congratulations. You and Ziggler should have a good match."

"Thanks Dean," Roman said as he grabbed a bottled water off one of the tables. "Good to see you," he said and started to walk away.

"Hey Renee, Cesaro, and I are going to get something to eat after the show. You should come with us so we can catch up."

"Thanks Dean, but I can't tonight." He said and rushed off.

Dean watched him walk away. That was the most Roman had said to him in a year. Dean still didn't know why Roman and Seth avoided him, even though he tried to fix whatever had caused them to stop being friends. Seth was working in Ring of Honor now so he supposed things would never go back to normal.

He went looking for Renee. As he walked he dialed Joey Mercury's number. "Hey Joey I'm not going to be at NXT tomorrow. I'm headed to Wisconsin."

DDD

Notes: CM Punk gets a surprise visitor next chapter.


	5. Meeting

"Glad you could make it," Dean said when Sara Del Rey joined them at a small restaurant not far from the arena. She took a seat next to Renee across from Antonio.

"Thanks for inviting me." She said picking up a menu. "How'd the show go?"

"I lost," Antonio said with a sigh. "It was me and Reigns at the end and I got eliminated. I almost had it."

"You'll get him next time." A waiter came up to them and they gave him their order. As soon as he left Sara continued. "I didn't know Roman was back in WWE." She traded a look with Antonio that neither Renee nor Dean noticed.

"Yeah," Renee said taking a drink of water. "He's been back for a couple of weeks. You should have heard his first promo back. He demanded a match with Bray but Bray hasn't been back since he lost his match with Ziggler at Survivor Series."

"Yeah the whole Wyatt family seem to have disappeared," Antonio said. "It's kind of nice." He said with a grin.

"Antonio!" a voice called. They turned to see the former WWE COO Hunter Hearst Helmsley approaching their table. "Dean, Miss Del Rey." He said. He turned to Renee. "I don't think I've had the pleasure of meeting you."

"Renee Young. I am a backstage interviewer."

"What are you doing here? Antonio asked not hiding his disdain for seeing his former friend.

"I'm here with my wife and daughters," he said pointing at where Stephanie was with her kids. "I saw you were here and thought I'd say hi."

"Hi," Cesaro said through gritted teeth.

Dean watched Antonio surprised by Antonio's reaction. He hadn't seen Hunter at all the past year so he didn't understand the hostility that his Swiss friend was showing their former boss.

"Dean you're looking well." Hunter said turning his attention away from Antonio.

"Thanks." Dean said feeling even more confused.

"Hunter," Antonio started to say.

"Gotta go," Hunter said taking the hint. "I think I see that our food's there." He said and left.

"Everything okay?" Dean asked Antonio seeing his friend was glaring at the back of Hunter.

"Fine," Antonio said taking a drink of the drink that had just been set before him.

They didn't discuss Hunter the rest of the night.

DDD

The next day Dean knocked on the door of a house in Milwaukee Wisconsin. After a few moments, the door opened and AJ Brooks' smiling face greeted him. "Hey Dean!" she said giving him a hug. "How are you?"

"I'm doing good AJ. Is Punk here, or is he at the gym?"

"At the gym. You want to come in? He should be home in a couple of hours." She held the door open and allowed the Ohioan into the apartment. "You want something to drink?"

"Water would be fine." He said as he reached down and pet Larry who had come running up to him. He sat down on the couch. Larry jumped onto the couch and joined him. AJ came back into the room and handed him a bottled water.

"Paige called me to tell me you were backstage at Royal Rumble last night," AJ said as she sat down in an armchair.

"Yeah," Dean said as he unscrewed the lid. "I was making sure Sami Zayn got settled in. I saw Roman there. He seemed mad at Antonio Cesaro."

"Really?" she asked. "I didn't even know Reigns was back. Course I have been gone from WWE long enough that I don't know who's still there. Is Seth back too?"

"No he's still in Ring of Honor I think. I wanted to talk to Roman to see if we could patch things up, but he wouldn't talk to me. Antonio said Roman's still mad at how the Shield fell apart. That he blames me and that's why he won't talk to me."

AJ opened her mouth to say something but stopped.

Dean didn't seem to notice as he continued. "I mean I realize I screwed up by breaking my ankle more than once but was that enough to break up the Shield?"

"Dean," AJ started to say.

"I mean how did everything get so out of control?" he stood up fidgeting with his jacket. "I want to be friends again with them. I mean they are the best friends I've ever had. I just wish I knew how to fix this."

"Dean," AJ said, "I don't know all the details, but I'm sure this wasn't all your fault. Maybe Roman and Seth need time to let things go. I mean you and Punk weren't friends right away."

"If it wasn't for Antonio, I probably wouldn't know we were friends. What the hell happened in 2014?"

Just the end of your world. AJ thought but didn't say anything. She liked Dean and didn't agree with what Seth and Roman did. She could see why they did it, but it didn't mean she agreed with it. She took out her phone and sent Punk a text.

 _Dean's here._

After a couple of minutes Punk responded with: _I'll be there in an hour or so. I'll stop and get food._

 _s_

 _Roman's back in WWE and apparently, Dean was at the show Sunday._

A couple of minutes later she got this reply: _It was bound to happen. I've got to get back to training._

"So Phil will be here in an hour." she handed Dean a remote. "You can watch TV. I'm going to work on my book."

"Okay." Dean said before settling in for a rerun of CSI.


	6. Voice From the Past

CM Punk left Rufus Sports gym an hour with cellphone in hand. He dialed a number.

"Hello?" a voice greeted him after a couple of rings.

"How soon can you get to Milwaukee?" Punk asked as way of an answer.

"Punk?" Seth asked in surprise. "I don't know. why do I need to be in Milwaukee?"

"It's either that or I send him to you."

"I don't have time for this." Seth said with a sigh. "Who are you sending my way?"

"Dean. He wants to make up with you and Roman. I don't know how to even try to dissuade him from this."

"I can't talk to him!" Seth said in a shocked voice. "You know why."

"Seth you agreed to disband the Shield. That doesn't mean you agreed to stop talking to Dean. Look it's been over a year. I'm surprised he hasn't wanted to 'fix' this sooner. Look either you come to Milwaukee, or I help him arrange a flight to Philadelphia. I'm sure Kaz and Chris will be happy to see him."

He could imagine Seth's face going pale. "I'll catch a flight as soon as possible. Can't you come up with something? Or ask Roman?"

"I tried to call Roman but he won't answer my calls or return my calls. I've got two words for you. Bray's missing."

"Shit." Seth said. "I'll call you tomorrow." Seth hung up.

Punk sighed. When did, everything become so complicated?

DDD

Roman was on top of the world at RAW that night. He had won the Royal Rumble and he was going to WrestleMania in Dallas to face Dolph Ziggler for the title. The only thing that would be better was if Seth and Dean were there to celebrate with him. Dean had been at the Royal Rumble but that wasn't the same thing. He couldn't talk to him for fear that someone would report it to Triple H. He didn't trust Cesaro. Cesaro was a former member of Evolution who had done who knew what to Dean in the times they had him. He also couldn't forget that Cesaro was the one who turned on him when they fought Seth and Rowan for the tag titles.

"Hey Roman," Jey Uso said as he entered the locker room followed by his twin brother Jimmy and sister-in-law Naomi. "You ready tonight?" He asked referring to the six-man tag match between them and New Day.

"Yeah," Roman said with a smile. His cousins were locked in a feud with New Day for the tag titles. They had had a title match at Royal Rumble, but lost after Kofi got involved. He was glad to assist them with getting revenge.

"We saw Dean last night," Jimmy said, "he looked great."

"Yeah," Roman agreed, "he invited me to go out with him, Cesaro, and Renee."

"Did you go?" Naomi asked.

"No," Roman said, "of course I didn't. I can't go out with him and you know why." He said letting his voice drop.

"It's been a year Roman," Jey said, "I think you're safe to talk to him. it's not like you guys are going to reform the Shield. Dean's probably going to be here a lot if they keep calling up wrestlers. I heard they're close to calling up Enzo and Cass and the Vaudevillians."

"Yeah," Roman said trying to hide his worry. He really had wanted to go out to dinner with them. Maybe he'd try to make it up to him the next time Dean was at a show.

His phone buzzed and saw Punk was calling him again. He didn't want to talk to him so he ignored the phone call.

A few minutes later his phone rang again. He was tired of this so he answered. "What is it Punk?"

There was a chuckle. "It's not Punk, Roman."

Roman hung up the phone. He wasn't going to deal with this now. Why was he calling? They said they'd leave them alone.

DDD

Notes: Sorry for the short chapter.


	7. Mini Reunion

Seth walked through the airport in Milwaukee pulling a small suitcase behind him. He hadn't checked any luggage as he didn't plan to stay long. He headed for the exit and as he walked towards baggage claim he saw a slim figure in jeans, a leather jacket, and a beanie hat holding a sign that said: Colby Lopez. Seth couldn't help but smile as he walked up to him. "Dean you're too much." He said as he hugged Dean.

"I thought you wouldn't recognize me since we haven't seen each other in over a year." He said with a large smile. "You check any luggage?"

"Nah. I'm only going to be here a couple of days." They walked out of the airport and took a cab to Punk and AJ's home. They got out and Seth adjusted his hood out of habit. He always felt like someone was watching him. Maybe it was from his time with the Wyatt family. Dean didn't notice as he knocked on the door.

AJ opened the door and led them in. "I'm going to walk Larry and let you guys talk." She said going to 9+6get the leash and soon left.

Dean and Seth walked into the living room. The TV was on, so Dean turned it off.

"How are you doing," Seth said as he sat in an armchair.

"Fine," Dean said. "I haven't hurt my ankle in over a year. Amazing considering, I broke it 4 times from what Antonio said."

"Cesaro?" Seth said with a scowl.

"Yeah," Dean said not noticing the scowl. "He's a good friend. I don't see him as much because I work in Florida and he's on the road. How's Ring of Honor?"

"It's good even though the Bullet Club keeps attacking me. I think they are determined to prove they are better than the Shield was. I've got the Motor City Machineguns backing me up though."

Dean didn't respond right away. "Speaking of the Bullet Club, WWE's got both AJ Styles and Finn Balor. There's talk they want Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, but since I work in NXT, it could just be rumors."

"WWE and Ring of Honor are being invaded by the Bullet Club. Who would have thought?" Seth said.

"Too bad the Shield is no longer together to take them down." Dean said.

Seth looked away uncomfortably. He knew this was going to come up. He had just hoped it could be like old times before they got into the difficult stuff. Thankfully he had talked to Punk before he left Philadelphia so he knew what Punk and Cesaro had told Dean regarding 2004. He just hoped he didn't slip up and say the wrong thing.

"We've all moved on," Seth said. "I heard Roman won the Royal Rumble and he's on his way to winning the title. I'm back in a promotion I love, and you're happy in NXT." He thought for a moment. "You're happy in NXT, aren't you?"

"Yeah. If I can't wrestle, at least I can help others get ready for the main roster. Dr. Andrews said my ankle's looking good and that I might be able to have the rod removed from my ankle in a year. He still won't clear me to wrestle."

"Probably a good idea," Seth said.

"Seth what happened to the Shield?" Dean said tired of the small talk.

"I don't know if it was one specific thing," Seth said. "We were constantly fighting and you broke your ankle twice. It was just too much. Roman and I left WWE and you stayed in WWE for a while before taking a job with NXT."

"You ever coming back to WWE?" Dean asked as he fiddled with the beanie hat that was in his hand.

"Probably not. I'd rather be in ROH. I don't think I could ever come back to WWE."

"Is it because of me? Paul Heyman said I was the reason the Shield broke up."

"He said that?" Figures Seth thought. He didn't trust Heyman to say anything that was true. Even though he supposed in a way their need to protect Dean was the reason the Shield broke up. He couldn't tell Dean that though.

"Yeah he said it was because of my ankle and that I was starting a lot of fights. That I was a hothead who had to prove I wasn't the weak link of the Shield."

"I hate Heyman." Seth admitted. "What he said was kind of true. I mean you were trying to show you weren't the weak link but you were definitely not the reason the Shield broke up. I think Roman and I felt guilty that your career was over."

"Wasn't it over after the Shield broke up? I broke it a third time while training to get back in the ring?"

Did he miss that detail? Did Punk mention that? He didn't think the former WWE wrestler would intentionally hide something. "Well I think maybe we realized it before you did." Seth quickly covered. "2014 was a bad year. You're lucky you don't remember it. I wish I was that lucky."

"It sucks missing a year of your life." Dean said. "I have to depend on second hand information. There's stuff I still don't understand. I hate hockey. I mean before I didn't watch it but it was because I didn't care for it. Now I hate it."

The hockey thing. Seth thought closing his eyes. That never left. He didn't know what exactly happened in New Jersey but he knew that hockey had sort of been a trigger for Dean. There was so much he didn't know about the first-time Evolution grabbed Dean. He was sure he didn't want to know, and was glad that Dean didn't remember.

"I'm not much of a fan of hockey myself," Seth finally said. "Give me a good baseball or football game any day."

The front door opened and AJ and Larry returned. "You guys okay?" she asked.

"Fine." Dean said.

"Yeah fine," Seth said. He wished it really was fine. Nothing was going to be fine again.


	8. Breaking up is Hard to Do

Dean walked up to Joey Mercury's office a couple of days later. It was a nice visit with Seth but something still felt so off. He stopped at the door ready to knock when he heard Joey on the phone.

"I'm not taking him," Joey was saying. "You know damn well why I won't let him in the building. He's his brother Hunter." Long pause. "Yeah I know the Wyatts have disappeared. How do I know he won't do something? He broke his freaking ankle! You said you would stay out of this. No, they haven't. I would know. just the two of them? That's not a reunion. Yeah I'm protecting him. someone's got to." There was a phone slam.

Dean tentatively knocked on the door wondering what that was all about.

"Come in," Joey called in a tired voice.

Dean opened the door and stepped inside.

"Oh, hey Dean." Joey said.

"What did Hunter want?" Dean asked as he took a seat in the seat he usually sat in when he was in Joey's office.

"He may be gone from this company but he keeps sticking his big nose in."

"He wants you to bring back Bo Dallas?"

"Yeah. I don't need a guy who intentionally injures another guy here. I have enough people here that do that without trying. How's Punk and AJ?" He asked changing the subject.

"They're doing okay. Punk's working hard with getting ready for UFC. I met with Seth."

"Oh?" Joey asked. "How'd that go? As far as I know you haven't talked to him in a year."

"It went okay. He didn't really seem to want to be friends again. I don't get it but whatever."

"That's too bad." Joey said. "So, here's what I have in mind for you this week."

DDD

Roman stood in the doorway of the Performance Center. It was his day off, but he didn't usually go to the Performance Center. He always preferred spending his precious time off with his wife and daughter, but after the call he received from Seth the day before, he wanted to talk to Dean.

"Hey Roman," his cousin Nia Jax said as she came up to him. "Long time no see," she said before hugging him.

"Yeah," Roman said looking around her. "Is Dean here?"

"I think he's talking to Joey Mercury. His office…"

"Thanks, but I know where his office is. It was good seeing you Nia," he said before walking away.

He went up to Joey's office and knocked on the door.

"Come in," Joey called.

He opened the door and found Joey on the phone. Dean wasn't in the room. Joey smiled and held up one finger. "Sorry someone came into my office. I'll have to call you later. Actually yeah. Okay talk to you later." He hung up. "Roman long time no see. I heard you were back in the WWE. Congrats on winning the Royal Rumble."

"Thanks. Is Dean here?" He didn't want to deal with small talk with anyone today. He was on a mission of sorts.

"Yeah actually he is. He's in the weight room talking to Colin Cassidy."

"Thanks," Roman said and left the office. He walked to the weight room and found Dean sitting on a weight bench talking to Colin "Big Cass" Cassidy and Enzo Amore. Colin was lifting weights while Enzo was spotting.

He didn't know either man very well but he had heard they were a good tag team. Cass was very tall and Enzo had a mouth on him that rivaled Dean's.

"Hey Roman," Enzo called.

Dean turned around to look at him in surprise. He got up off of the weight bench and gave him a hug.

"Can we go somewhere and talk?" Roman asked eyeing the two men with suspicion. He didn't know them and at the moment, he didn't trust anyone.

"Sure. Cass, Enzo, I'll catch you guys later. We'll talk about your being called up soon." He said before leaving the weight room.

They walked out of the Performance Center and headed for Roman's car which was parked in a lone corner of the parking lot. "Roman I'm starting to think you're a bit paranoid." Dean said as he got into the car. Roman got in on the driver's side but didn't start the car.

"Seth told me he flew to Milwaukee to see you," Roman started.

"Yeah. We talked about the old days but he didn't really answer my question. My question is why did the Shield break up? he said there was fighting and I was constantly getting injured. But I want us all to be friends again."

"Dean that's just not going to happen. Seth's in ROH and you're here. I've got my match at WrestleMania. We just need to let the Shield end."

Dean turned to look him straight in the eye but Roman wouldn't look at him. "Roman I know you and I didn't get along at the end of 2013. But you always had my back, and you've never lied to me. Tell me what's really going on."

"I did."

"No, you didn't. You told me what Seth did. Tell me the truth Roman."

"I did," Roman said looking him in the eye this time. "We can't reform the Shield. It's done. Just let it go Dean. I have."

"Bullshit. If you did, why are you here?"

"To tell you to let it go. We're no longer friends Dean. You need to get that through your crazy mind. It's never happening Dean."

Dean's hands shook a little as he grabbed the door handle. "Well fine," he said as he opened the door. "Goodbye Roman." He said and got out of the car. He slammed the door and walked away. His hands reached into his jacket for the cigarette pack that wasn't there. He cursed as he turned around to look back at the car. He saw Roman was still there with his head against the steering wheel. He turned around not seeing that Roman was crying.

DDD

Notes: Fic starts to go crazy next chapter.


	9. Trouble Brewing

Notes: Introduction of a new (to this fic) character. I didn't think I'd be able to get him into this fic, but I did. Sorry for the short chapter. I'm hoping to start working on Silence again soon. Muses…I swear.

Dean sat in the ring corner and let out a sigh. He wasn't paying much attention to the action in the ring as he was too lost in thought. He couldn't shake the conversation he had with Roman. Something seemed off. He knew he and Roman hadn't talked in some time, other than the chance meeting at Royal Rumble, but he was pretty sure he knew him well enough to know he was lying.

"Penny for your thoughts Deano?" a voice said. He looked up to see the Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens standing there.

"Hey Kev. Didn't think you'd be back here now that you're on the main roster." He pulled himself up to a standing position and exited the ring.

"Joey asked me to come by and give some pointers since I was in town. You seemed kind of lost in thought."

"Yeah sorry. I was just thinking about stuff. How're Owen and Elodie?" Dean asked referring to Kevin's kids.

"They are good," Kevin said with a smile on their face. "I almost brought them but I thought I'd be too busy."

"Tell them I said hi." Dean saw Joey was signaling to him. "I'll talk to you later." He said and walked away.

"Sure Dean," Kevin said and went up to where Matt Bloom stood.

Dean walked over to Joey.

"Everything okay?" Joey asked.

"Yeah," Dean answered.

"How did your conversation with Roman go?" Joey said as they started to walk out of the main training room.

"He told me we will never be friends again. He told me that I needed to get it through my crazy mind and let it go. I know he's lying about something."

"Wait he said you needed to get it through your crazy mind?" Joey said starting to seethe. How could Roman say that? He wondered.

"Yeah. Is it crazy to want to be friends again? Did our friendship really mean nothing to Roman? We don't have to be around each other all the time to be friends."

"No, it's not." Joey said trying to keep his voice even. He didn't want to tip Dean off that there was something wrong with all of this. It wasn't his fault. "That totally sucks man. I'm going to talk to Roman about this."

"Maybe he's right. Maybe we should just let it go. My ankle won't let me in the ring again. I don't want to remind Roman of my failures."

Joey was surprised by what Dean was saying. It wasn't much different than what he was saying before Wyatt cleared his memory. Dean hadn't wanted to be with Seth and Roman anymore. He didn't want to be reminded of what happened to him.

"I'm going to head out," Dean said as he went over to grab his bag from Joey's office. "I have an appointment with Dr. Andrews tomorrow. See you later." He said and left.

Joey watched him go and looked at his watch. He headed to his office. He was going to have a word with Roman. He had barely opened the door when a fist hit him out of nowhere and he fell to the floor out cold.

The large man stepped out of the shadows and reached into Joey's pocket and pulled his cellphone out. He pocketed it and slipped out of the Performance Center without anyone seeing him. Or so he thought.

DDD

End notes: I was not referring to Kevin Owens. You'll see who stole the cellphone and why soon


	10. Attack

Bayley, who had been in the locker room making a phone call to her fiancé, waited until the large bearded man left before going to Joey's office. She had never seen him before and thought there was something suspicious about how he left Joey's office. She opened the door and gasped when she saw him lying face down on the floor. She rushed up to him and shook his shoulder.

Joey groaned as he opened his eyes. "What happened?" He asked as he turned over to look at Bayley.

"That guy who was in your office must have clocked you."

"You saw him?" Joey asked. "I didn't see anything. Who was he?"

"I don't know. never saw him before. He had a thick beard and a mohawk hairstyle."

Joey got up and reached into his jacket. "He stole my phone!" he exclaimed. He was so done with people stealing his phone. It had to have had to do with the former Shield. "Bayley go see if Dean's still here. I'm going to see if I can find anything on my web camera that'll give me an idea of who hit me."

Bayley quickly left the office. A few minutes later one of the security guards came into the room. "You okay, Mr. Mercury?" He asked.

"Fine Ken." Joey said as he called up his web cam. Ever since someone broke into his office back in 2014, he had kept his web cam on. He found the video and watched. He didn't recognize him either. But he kind of looked like someone that would hang around the Wyatt family. "You see this guy enter the building Ken?" he said pointing his laptop screen to the security guard.

"No sir," he answered. "I'll let the night guard know to be on the lookout for him.

"Joey!" Bayley called as she ran back into the room. "Dean's hurt."

Ken and Joey didn't wait for more information as they rushed out of Joey's office. They headed for the parking lot and found Dean leaning against his car holding his ribs in obvious paid. Joey thought there was some solace in that it wasn't his ankle again.

Joey went up to him. "What happened?" he asked Dean as Ken fumbled for his phone to call 911.

"I'm okay," Dean said as he moved away from his car. "Some big guy jumped me from behind. Right before it I got some text from you saying you needed to talk to me."

"It was the same guy who attacked me in my office. He must have sent you the text from my phone."

"Why would someone randomly attack either of us?" Dean asked in confusion. He groaned as he moved completely away from his car.

"Don't know," Joey answered.

"He kind of looked like a Wyatt."

Joey didn't know how respond to that.

Ken came over to him. "This was sitting on the car," he said handing him his cellphone. There was a paper sticking to it. It read:

Tell Dean to run

DDD

Notes: Sorry for another short chapter.


	11. Shield's Got Problems

Dean refused to go to a hospital saying he felt fine. He said he was clocked in the head and that was it. Joey was at least able to convince him to let one of the trainers check him out. The trainer said there was no concussion and he should be fine. Joey thought that was possibly the only clean bill of health Dean had ever received after an attack. Dean left NXT with Enzo and his girlfriend Liv Morgan. Joey couldn't help but worry about Dean but at least Dean was leaving with someone. He didn't know how to convince Dean to stay at his apartment without saying something he shouldn't.

Joey picked up his phone and called Roman Reigns. He needed to give Roman a piece of mind about both what he said to Dean and about Wyatt's attack. The phone rang three times before Roman's daughter Joelle answered.

"Hello?" She asked.

"Hi Joelle. It's Joey Mercury. Is your dad there?"

"Hi Joey! Yeah one second."

A few moments later Roman's voice answered. "Hi Joey," he said sounding nervous not that Joey blamed him.

"How could you tell Dean that?"

"It's the truth."

"It's not and even he didn't believe you."

"Look it's for the best," Roman said with a sigh. "If we became friends again, Hunter could start this all over again. Dean can't handle it."

"Roman he was here."

"I know Dean was there." Roman said. Next his voice was muffled by a hand over the receiver as he yelled, "Joelle! Get ready! Grandpa will be here in 10 minutes to pick you up!" His voice came through clear again when he said, "sorry about that. I know Dean was there," he repeated. "I came to see him remember? You just said you couldn't believe I told Dean what I did."

"I don't mean Dean, Roman. The Wyatt family were here and attacked Dean. There was a note with my cellphone that read Tell Dean to Run."

"What?!" Roman yelled. "He said he'd back off."

"Didn't you call him out when you came back?" Joey reminded him. "You know he was never interested in making Dean a member of the family. He's trying to get at you." Or probably more at Seth, Joey thought to himself. He wasn't sure why Bray wanted Roman but he knew the cult leader had a fascination with Seth. Dean was always a pawn.

"Yeah," Roman admitted. There was a pause and then Joey could hear Roman say, "Joelle get your stuff." His voice came back on the line. "Sorry my dad's picking up Joelle. I gotta head back on the road tomorrow."

"You called Bray out two weeks ago," he said again trying to steer the conversation back to that.

"I know," Roman said with a sigh. "I just got back from surgery. You realize Harper was the one who injured my knee right? Shane claims he doesn't know what the Wyatts did but I gotta wonder."

"Hey Shane's a good guy," Joey defended. He had known Shane a lot longer than Roman did. "I doubt Hunter told Shane what was going on."

"Yeah I guess." Roman said.

There was silence.

"Roman?" Joey asked.

He looked at his phone.

The call had ended.

DDD

Seth was staring at his phone not believing what he was seeing. He had left his phone at home when he had gone to work out at the gym. He didn't want people bothering him while he was working out . When he got home, he turned on his cellphone and found a text from Joey Mercury. Or at least he thought it was from Joey. It was from Joey's phone, but it seemed way too cryptic and not at all like Joey. The message read:

 _You better tell your boys to run._

He quickly dialed Joey's phone number.

"Roman?" Joey asked.

"No, it's Seth. Why did you send me a text message saying 'You better tell your boys to run?'"

"Damn it," Joey swore. "I gotta get to Roman's. Seth, I never sent that message. My phone was taken by some guy who is obviously a part of the Wyatt family. He texted Dean asking him to come back to NXT, and then attacked him. Call Dean and tell him to meet me at Roman's. I don't know what I'm going to say to him, but we've got problems."

"I'll be there as soon as I can," Seth said and hung up.

Seth dialed Dean's number.

"Hello?" a voice that was decidedly not Dean's answered. It was a guy with a gruff New Jersey accent.

"Put Dean on." He didn't care who this guy was. though he wondered why he had Dean's phone.

"Dean doesn't want to talk to you at the moment."

"I don't care. I don't even know who you are, but I sure don't want to talk to you. Put Ambrose on now."

There was a pause.

He could hear Dean's voice say, "hang up the phone Enzo."

The call ended.

Seth stared at it. What just happened here? He was pretty sure he and Dean were at least somewhat okay when they both left Wisconsin. He decided to text Dean instead.

 _Look I'm not sure why you're mad at me, but meet Joey at Roman's. Roman wants to talk to you._

It was a lie, but at the moment he didn't care.

DDD

Notes: Things just fell apart with the stealing of a cellphone. Funny how that kind of thing happens. All I will say at this moment is: Dean's still cranky about his disastrous meeting with both Roman and Seth. He doesn't know why they hate him or why he has a stalker, he has a headache, and doesn't want to talk to Seth or Roman. Questions for next chapter: Will he heed Seth's message? Will Zo give him the message? Is Roman okay? Lots of questions as this this fic just got life in it.


	12. Calling Everyone In

Liv Morgan drove the car towards Dean's apartment. She looked over at her boyfriend, Enzo, for a moment before saying "why didn't you want to talk to Seth?" She knew she was prying, but she was very curious about this.

Dean sighed. "I don't want to talk to anyone," he said. "I'm just tired and my head hurts. He and Roman don't want to be friends anymore, so why should I talk to him?"

"Well he just sent a text message saying to meet Joey at Roman's home. He says Roman wants to talk to you."

"Give me my cellphone Enzo." Dean said before taking the phone. He dialed Joey's number.

"Roman?" Joey asked as way of greeting.

"No," Dean said his brow furrowing wondering why Joey seemed anxious. "It's Dean. Seth sent me a text saying to meet you at Roman's because Roman wants to talk. What's going on?"

"I'll explain when you get there. I'm leaving right now."

"Okay." He said and hung up. He leaned forward. "I'm going to go to Roman's." he said and gave directions. When they arrived, Dean got out of the car, and was surprised when Enzo and Liv left the car. "You guys don't have to come in," he said.

"It's okay." Enzo said as he pulled his baseball hat down further. "I wanna know what's going on."

Joey pulled up next to them. "Sika's here." Dean said pointing out Sika's car in the driveway. Sika was the father of Roman.

"Dean!" a voice yelled as the door swung open and a girl came running out. Dean picked Joenelle up and swung her around. It felt like forever since he saw her.

She giggled and Dean set her down.

"Your dad here Janelle," Joey asked.

"Yeah." She said and giggled again. "Mom took his phone away. She said he spent too much time on it. I think she said that because Grandpa was just pulling into the driveway."

"Damn," Joey swore. "Give me a heart attack Galina."

"Everything okay," Liv asked looking at the head of NXT.

"Yeah. You guys can go. Everything should be okay."

"You sure," Enzo asked turning to Dean.

Dean turned around to look at Joey who was looking a lot better as time progressed. "Yeah. I'll call you guys if I need you."

Dean followed Janelle into her home. Roman was sitting there talking to Sika. Roman looked at Joey. "Dad don't you need to go?" he asked.

Sika snorted. "Trying to get rid of me? I haven't seen Dean since…" he stopped when he saw the look at Roman's face. "Since you guys broke up. Come on Joeenelle get your stuff. Your grandmother's waiting."

"I gotta run some errands," Galina said and she left with the other two.

"What are you doing here?"

"Well," Joey said pulling out his phone. "I think we need to conference call Seth into this."

"But Dean…"

"Dean nothing Roman. Bray's after all three of you. Doesn't matter how much Dean remembers because it doesn't change one damn thing." He dialed Seth's number and put him on speaker phone.

Dean stared at Joey wondering what he was talking about. Bray Wyatt was after them? They didn't have much interaction with the Wyatts other than feuding over who got to destroy CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. He was sure at one point they would fight but as far as he knew they hadn't. He knew there was something they weren't saying.

Seth's voice came on the phone. "Hello?"

"Seth it's me." Joey said. "Roman and Dean are here."

"He can't be!"

"Well he is and it doesn't matter anymore. Bray's back."

"Would someone tell me what's going on?" Dean demanded.

Joey thought about a story as he drove there. "Back before you guys broke up, you were feuding with the Wyatts. It caused a lot of the fighting and after you broke up, the Wyatts left you alone. Apparently, they were glad with you guys no longer being a team. Well until Roman called Bray out."

"So why are they going after me?" Dean asked. "I can't even wrestle anymore."

"Don't know Dean," Roman said. "I think we'll know pretty soon. Seth, you coming to Florida?"

"Yeah and Punk's coming down too. I think you should call Cesaro."

"No!" Roman said vehemently. "He works for them."

"Worked for them," Seth corrected. "He's Dean's friend as is Punk. Unless you want to get Styles involved, let's keep this group small."

Dean felt a headache coming on. This just made no sense. They kept talking like he wasn't sitting there. It was only a couple hours ago, that Roman was refusing to be friends and now they were all acting like it was the end of the world. Now he could see why they broke up.

They still couldn't agree on anything.

DDD

Notes: Things keep getting worse for the group and poor Dean has no clue on what's going on. Bray's a smart cookie is all I'll say.


	13. Meet Me in Birmingham

Dean lay on the couch in Joey's apartment. It seemed agreed upon that they would all be staying with Joey, and no one seemed to mind about the crowdedness. Joey made some remark about it wouldn't be the first time, but Dean didn't get it. He still wasn't sure how he, Roman, Galina, Seth, Punk, his wife AJ, and Cesaro were going to all fit in this small apartment. He had volunteered his own apartment but that was declined almost immediately.

Dean stood up and stretched. He looked over at Roman who was sitting in a recliner texting someone. Galina had gone to the airport to pick up Punk, AJ, and Seth who's planes were arriving about the same time, and Joey had gone back to NXT. Cesaro had declined the invitation saying he was fine.

"I think this is a bad idea," Dean said as he sat back down. "I mean eight of us in the same apartment? You don't seem to like Punk and Cesaro either. Or me for that matter."

Roman looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Dean I…" he stopped as if he suddenly remembered he did hate Dean. His expression darkened. "We'll be fine. Galina and I are headed back on the road tomorrow anyway with Cesaro."

"Then why is Seth and Punk coming here? I don't get it. Punk's got a fight to get ready for. I don't know what Seth's doing, but he seems even less thrilled about being here in Florida. I'm thirty-years-old. I don't need baby sitters."

"No one ever said you did," Roman said and then turned back to his phone.

Dean sighed and walked out of the room. This conversation was going nowhere fast. He realized he was the one who wanted to be friends with Roman and Seth again, but if this was a step towards doing that, he was ready to go back to not being friends.

Dean's phone rang. He looked down at his phone and saw it was Shane McMahon. "Hey Shane what's up?"

"Hey I want to have a meeting with you. Can you meet me in Birmingham Alabama Monday?"

"Yeah I can do that." Dean said. "Do you want me to bring up Enzo and Cass or the Vaudvillains?" He asked.

"I don't think we'll have any further call ups until after WrestleMania. I just want to talk to you about possibly coming back on the road full time."

"I'm not exactly cleared for action." Dean reminded him.

"I know," Shane said with a chuckle. "I have another idea. I'll see you Monday okay?"

"Sure. Bye Shane." He said and hung up.

"What did Shane want?" a voice asked from behind him. he jumped. He turned around to see Cesaro standing there. He hadn't heard a knock on the door.

"He wants me to be at RAW in Birmingham. He wants to talk to me about returning to the road full time."

Cesaro looked confused for a moment but shrugged. "Hey just don't go hopping back in the ring. I don't want to have to carry your sorry butt to the emergency room."

"Like you've ever!" Dean said with a chuckle.

Cesaro just smirked. "As far as you know."

"Hey I think I'd remember!"

"I remember clearly taking you to the hospital the last time you broke your ankle. You don't remember."

Dean barely moved out of the way as Roman pushed him aside and speared Cesaro into a wall. Thankfully he didn't damage the wall, and that the neighbors weren't home to hear it.

"You got a problem with me Reigns?" Cesaro asked as he climbed back to his feet. He felt fine but he hadn't been expecting that.

"Yeah I do." Roman said. "You weren't there."

"Roman," Cesaro said looking him straight in the eye. "I was. _You_ weren't _."_

"Would you stop fighting over me," Dean tried to joke. It was a defense mechanism of his. "Or at least wait until you're in Birmingham? Joey would kill you both if you destroyed the apartment."

Cesaro and Roman didn't break eye contact for a minute. Cesaro finally looked at Dean and said, "it doesn't matter who was there anyway."

Roman grabbed his car keys. "I'm leaving." He said and stormed off.

Dean stared at Cesaro before saying, "you want a beer?"

DDD

Later that night, Seth and Roman sat at a bar not far from Joey's apartment. "We can't do this." Seth reminded Roman.

"Like we have a choice? Until we get our hands on Bray, Dean needs someone watching him."

"Roman, Bray's never been interested in Dean." Seth reminded him. "It's Hunter we gotta watch out for. I don't trust Cesaro and I really don't like the idea of Dean being at RAW. I'm going to RAW."

Seth's phone suddenly buzzed with a text. It read:

 _Find me in Birmingham and return to your family. The little hound with the empty head doesn't need you. Neither does the overprotective hound._

"Damn it," Seth cursed. He handed the phone to Roman.

"Bray."

DDD

Notes: Okay it all starts to heat up next chapter.


	14. An Offer

Notes: I have to admit, I completely forgot that Dusty had died in 2015, so I will definitely need to go back and take that part out of the second chapter. Dedicated to the newlywed couple Dean and Renee. They are so cute together. I hope they have a long and loving marriage. In this fic, they've only been dating for less than a year though.

Roman and Seth walked into Joey's apartment and found the house dark. Roman turned the light on and found Dean asleep in the recliner. Punk, AJ, Galina, and Joey were sitting at the kitchen table talking quietly.

Seth looked over at Dean before setting his phone on the table. "I got this text." He said quietly.

Punk picked it up and read it. He quickly pulled his own phone out and started searching through it.

Joey grabbed the phone. "Bray," he said shaking his head. "He and his games."

Punk held up a finger and dialed a number. "What the Hell are you doing?" He demanded. "Yeah you know perfectly well who this is. I saw the text. Just who's side are you on? Yeah well back off. I mean it Paul." He hung up.

"Hunter?" Galina asked.

Punk shook his head before looking at Cesaro who had just entered the room. "Heyman."

Joey got between Roman and Seth who looked like they were about to attack Cesaro. "Not now."

"No I think it's deserved." Punk said getting up and walking up to the Swiss. "Paul said this was your idea." He said grabbing the phone out of AJ's hands and thrusting it at Cesaro.

Cesaro shut his eyes after reading it. "It's not what it looks like." He said. He ducked away from Seth. "Look I'm on your side. All I told Paul was that we were going to be in Alabama. I said maybe you should send Seth a text. I had no idea he would send this. He really doesn't care what happens in WWE. Last time I talked to him he was more interested in helping Lesnar get back into WWE to take on the winner of Dolph Ziggler versus you Roman. He stopped being my advocate a long time ago. I also know he has nothing to do with Hunter."

"I don't know why we should trust you?" Seth said folding his arms over his chest.

"Oh, really Seth? I certainly don't trust you. At least I know what I've done. You still don't know what you did do you? Or so you claim." He grabbed his suitcase. "I'll see you guys at RAW. I'm going back to my apartment." He said and left the apartment.

"What is he talking about?" Galina asked as she stood up. she was ready for bed herself. They all had to get up early to catch their flights.

"I don't know," Seth said staring at the closed door. What was he talking about?

DDD

Dean stood fidgeting backstage Monday. He didn't know what Shane McMahon wanted to talk to him about. He wasn't completely comfortable with the fact that Punk and AJ had said they wanted to sit in and hear it. Neither of them worked for WWE anymore, and he didn't even understand why they were there.

Shane came into the room briefcase in hand. "Thanks for meeting with me on such short notice." He stopped and looked at AJ and Punk in shock. "Phil, AJ," he greeted, not hiding his surprise.

"Hey Shane." Punk said from his seat next to Dean.

"How are you?" AJ asked from her seat next to Punk.

"I'm okay." He turned his attention back to Dean. "How would you like to take over as RAW General Manager? I've been trying to run both RAW and SmackDown since Dusty passed away, and I need some help. You don't have to step back in the ring again, and I think you need it."

"Shane," Punk said. This couldn't be a good idea. Shane and Dean had no idea why they shouldn't do this. He wished he could tell them that but Dean's mental state was at jeopardy.

"Well I'd get to see my girlfriend more," Dean said completely ignoring Punk. "That's a plus. I don't know if Dr. Andrews would be okay with this."

"I checked with him and he said as long as you don't get anywhere near a ring, you should be okay. Maybe we can convince AJ to come back and help?" Shane asked looking at AJ. "I know we can't convince Punk here since he's got a fight coming up."

"No, I'm fine with not coming back," AJ said after a moment. "I'm working on a book and other stuff, but I think Dean would be good don't you, Punk?"

Punk opened his mouth to disagree. This was a very bad idea. Wyatts were here. Orton was here. Seth and Roman couldn't be with him. Seth didn't even work for WWE. He had to go back to Ring of Honor. Also, he was with Seth. He didn't trust Cesaro. But what could he say? "I don't know," he finally said.

"How about a one day trial to see how it works out?" Shane asked. "Punk can tell me at the end of the night."

Dean nodded. "Sounds good to me." He got up after looking at his watch. "If that's it, I'm going to go find Renee." He said before leaving the room.

"I wish I could tell you why this is a bad idea," Punk said. "You have no idea what happened in 2014. Can you promise security with Dean?"

"I can," Shane said. "I think that's probably the best idea. He can definitely have security with him. there's enough people in this company that would probably not accept Dean as General Manager. I think Dr. Andrews would appreciate it if we didn't put his hard work in getting Dean's ankle back into one piece in jeopardy of being ruined," he joked. "Don't worry Phil. Dean's going to be okay."

"Yeah well I wish I had your confidence."

DDD

Notes: Sorry for the delay with this chapter. I'm trying to get back to writing my Shield fics.


	15. Return

Notes: Several people's motives are going to be questioned in the next few chapters as things start to spiral out of control. Also, I will eventually answer the question: just what is Seth blocking out?

"This is a really bad idea," Roman said for the third time as he, Seth, AJ, and Punk sat in Shane's office which was temporarily Dean's office tonight.

"Why?" Dean asked daring Roman to answer the question he had asked the first time Roman said it.

"Let's start with the fact that you were attacked by a guy who looks like a Wyatt," Seth reminded him. "I gotta go back to Ring of Honor so I won't be able to help if things go..." he didn't know how to finish that sentence. "Well if things just go wrong."

Dean glared at him. "Just a few days ago you and Roman didn't want anything to do with me. Now you guys are suddenly concerned about my safety? Where were you when I lost my memory and didn't know anything about 2014? Oh, yeah you were no longer my friends!"

"Dean that's not fair," Punk finally spoke up. "They had no idea you didn't remember 2014." It was a lie but it was what he and Cesaro had told Dean.

"Well I still don't remember 2014," Dean reminded Punk. "I want to try this out. I mean if you guys are so worried, you guys can stay in the office with me tonight. Now," he said taking out the paper that Shane had given him. "I have to go out there in about ten minutes." He looked over the card that had already been planned. "And Roman you've got a match with Cesaro," he said barely holding back a chuckle.

"What?" roman asked grabbing the paper.

Shane, who hadn't said a word during the exchange spoke up then. "Heyman asked for the match."

"He's here?" Punk said looking confused.

"Apparently Cesaro asked him to be his advocate again."

Seth got up and stalked out of the office.

"Roman is there any chance he'll," Shane asked signaling at the closed door.

"No Seth feels obligated to Cary Silkin after the contracts fiasco. He's not going to come here while he's still working for Ring of Honor."

Shane nodded. He may not have an understanding of what happened while he was gone, but he had to do a lot of apologizing to Ring of Honor for taking Dean and Seth's contracts. He looked over at Dean who had at one point taken back the paper back, was writing on it. He didn't seem to be paying attention, or notice the tension in the air. He wondered what was going on in the younger man's head. Though with Dean's reputation, he wasn't sure if he really wanted to know.

There was a knock on the door before a security guard came in. Shane glanced at his watch. He and Dean had to get to Gorilla to be ready for the opening segment.

"You ready to make your TV return," Shane asked Dean who was capping his pen.

Dean grinned. "It feels like forever." He said honestly. "No stairs, right?"

Shane grinned back. "Not this time."

DDD

Notes: Sorry for the first chapter. I wanted to end it here because things start to get dark.


	16. Starting to Unravel

Seth found Cesaro standing in the men's locker room lacing up his boots. Heyman was standing there talking on his cellphone. It reminded him of when he was a kid and seeing Heyman carring around his huge cellphone on TV. Now he had a smart phone.

Seth went up and gave Cesaro a hard shove. "What's he doing here?" He demanded pointing at Heyman.

Heyman, who had ended the call when he saw Seth, stepped forward. "Get your hands off my client Mr. Rollins." Seth backed up a little. He could definitely take Heyman but at the moment he didn't see a reason to. "Now since you asked so nicely I'll tell you. Things are about to come crashing down in your little fantasy world you've created whether you realize it or not. I'm here to make sure Antonio's interests are protected."

"And what interests are those?" He asked folding his arms over his chest.

"Those interests are none of your business," Heyman said. "What business is it to you anyway? You're leaving to go back to the minor leagues. People generally work their way up from Ring of Honor. They don't go back to the indies. Maybe you should get yourself a manager. Or advocate. But not me. I'm going to stay as far away from you and Reigns as I can."

"What about Dean?"

Heyman smirked. "That's an interesting question isn't it?"

"Seth," Punk said sticking his head in the locker room. "Dean's about to go on TV. I thought you'd want to be at Gorilla in case something happens."

"Punk."

"Heyman."

That was the only exchange as Punk and Seth walked away. "Heyman said he was going to stay away from me and Roman but he didn't say why not Dean."

"Yeah I heard," Punk said. "Look Seth we can worry about that later. We…"

Here Comes the Money started playing in the arena. Punk and Seth hurried to Gorilla where they found AJ and Roman waiting. Dean was standing close to the curtain waiting. "Do I have music?" he asked.

Roman thought it was a strange question at first until it struck him. "You can use the Shield's."

The sound technician brought the song up into queue. He was just waiting for Dean to tell him to play the music.

DDD

In the arena Shane was waiting for the crowd to quiet down before he spoke. "As some of you may have read on , I have been searching for a RAW General Manager to help me run RAW. I have found one as well as one for Smackdown. I would like to take the moment to welcome back," there was a long pause before Shane continued "Dean Ambrose."

The arena went nuts as the Shield's music started playing. Dean stepped through the curtain and looked around at everyone. He had chosen to wear his old Shield hoody zipped up and his black leather jacket and jeans.

Dean walked down the ramp and stopped in front of the ring. there was a loud Welcome Back chant. They had no idea how long that felt to him. It may have been a year for them supposedly, but it still felt like two years to him. He hadn't minded staying backstage and off screen in NXT. Now he was glad to be out there.

He took the mic that had been left on the ring steps by Shane. He stepped into the ring. He suddenly had a feeling of dread for a brief moment. He didn't know why. It should feel normal to him. When was the last time he was here? He couldn't remember.

"Thanks for hiring me," Dean said. "It's different being on this side of the camera again. I may not remember 2014 but I think I can handle this. Just don't expect me to jump off the top rope," he said jokingly.

"Don't break your ankle this time!" a fan yelled from the crowd.

Dean chuckled. "I make no promises. I do want to take the time to announce the main event tonight. Roman Reigns vs Cesaro. In a…"

The lights went out.

Dean stood there in the middle of the ring wondering what was going on. When the lights came back on there was nothing different. "Someone forget to pay the electric bill?" he asked Shane.

Security came into the ring. He looked at one of the security guards and frowned. He looked at the other security guards but they all looked like the usually people they hired for these events.

The lights suddenly went out again. The security guard that had caught Dean's eye started whispering in Dean's ear.

When the lights came on Dean had a very blank look on his face and wondered how he got into this ring. The last thing he remembered was Georgia.

DDD

Notes: I almost wrote this as someone else returning as Smackdown General Manager but somehow that seemed beneath him.


	17. Hitting the Fan

Dean didn't know what was going on. He stared at Shane McMahon who was staring back at him. He realized he was in the middle of a ring somewhere without crutches. He looked down at his foot and saw he had no cast. He noticed he had a paper in his hand. He looked down at it and saw it was the card for the show. It read:

Cesaro vs Roman Reigns

Kalisto vs Rusev

Usos vs Curtis Axel and Fandango

Miz TV with guest ? see Miz

He stopped reading. Why was he holding the card and why was everyone staring at him?

"Dean are you okay?" Shane asked.

Dean stared at him not knowing what to say. He looked to the entrance expecting Triple H to come out and throw him out of the ring just for holding the lineup. When no one came out he decided to go with it. "Yeah I'm fine Shane O." he said.

He looked behind him at the security standing behind them. Why weren't they escorting him out of the ring?

"We'll announce more later," Shane said as he got out of the ring. Dean stared at him before reluctantly followed behind him. He hesitated in front of the curtain. He didn't know who would be standing on the other side. He slowly walked through and found AJ, CM Punk, and Seth Rollins standing there.

"You did good," Punk said to Dean. "But you look like you are about to pass out. You okay Dean?"

"Why are you here?" He asked Punk. He looked at Seth who wasn't dressed to wrestle. He was in a pair of skinny jeans and a t-shirt.

"We said we'd watch the curtain in case the Wyatts showed up," Seth said. "Lights went out twice but nothing happened. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Where's Triple H?" Dean asked looking around.

"Probably in Connecticut," Shane said as he walked up to stand behind him. "I really don't know. I haven't talked to him since he asked me to take over when he left. We talk like at family gatherings but that's it. Dean maybe you should sit down," Shane suggested. "Let's go to my office."

Dean stared at him. "Um no. That's okay," he looked down at his foot which was in a regular boot. What happened to the cast?

"It's going to be your office and besides," Shane said as he looked at someone not far from him. Dean turned around to see an unhappy Charlotte and Ric Flair. "I think Charlotte wants to talk to you."

"My office?"

"Yeah. I mean we'll have to share it when I come to the show, but you'll have your own office every week."

"Shane what are you talking about? Why do I need an office and where are we?"

"I'm going to get Roman." Seth said starting to walk away.

"Roman's here? I thought you said you were going to make sure the Wyatts didn't do anything."

"Dean what's the last thing you remember?" Punk asked with a confused look on his face.

"You guys were leaving for RAW but I had to stay behind in Gainesville."

"Dean that was…" AJ started to say.

"Dean you remember 2014?" Shane asked in surprise.

"What do you mean that I remember 2014? It's 2014!"

"It's 2016."

"What's going on?" Cesaro asked as he and Heyman walked up to them.

Dean backed up. He would have kept going but he was in front of the curtain separating backstage from the fans.

"I knew they were here!"

"Who?" Cesaro asked. "Dean what's going on?"

"I knew Evolution was here!"

"We need to go Shane," Punk said leading Dean away from the curtain. He stopped when he saw a camera man standing there filming. "Are we live?" He demanded Shane.

"No," Shane said with a frown. "Turn that camera off! I want that tape."

"Sure Mr. McMahon the person said turning off the camera and handing the camera over to Shane. "I thought you'd want to have this video for later."

"What's going on?" Roman asked coming up to them with Seth.

"Stay away from me!" Dean said trying to get away.

"He thinks it's 2014."

"I know it's 2014!" He looked at Cesaro and Heyman who was standing there with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Look Dean I'm not with the Wyatts anymore," Roman said taking a step closer to them. "Evolution isn't a group anymore. The Shield isn't even a group anymore. We need to go to your office to talk this over."

Roman leaned in to Shane and said, "you need to find Bray and throw him out of the building." He turned back to Dean. "Dean I swear I'm not a member of the Wyatts. We need to go talk."

Dean shook his head. "No."

AJ Styles came up to them. "Hey Dean," he said. "Congrats on being named RAW General Manager. I expect a world title reign with Ziggler."

"What? When did Ziggler become champion?"

Cesaro received a text. "Shit." He showed it to Heyman.

"We gotta get out of here. I told you helping them was a bad idea." Cesaro and Heyman walked away. No one noticed. They were too concerned about Dean.

Shane got a text. "Time to play the game?"

That stopped everyone's arguing. Even if Shane didn't know why he ewes receiving that text. Everyone else did.

DDD

Notes: Sorry for so much dialogue this chapter. Bray's playing his own little game that's forcing everyone to come back together. Wait till Dean discovers he has a girlfriend.


	18. He's Back

Notes: I sincerely apologize for the delay in updating this fic.

"Great," Roman grumbled as he looked at the phone. "Looks like Hunter's back to his old tricks."

"This isn't Hunter's phone number," Shane said. He decided to dial the phone number listed. It rang twice before it went to voice mail. He hung up without leaving a message. "It's Bray Wyatt's phone."

"Figures," Seth said. He wondered why he didn't get the text. He figured Bray would be bothering him again.

"I wonder why he would text that to Cesaro." Dean said not really understanding what everyone was talking about. Cesaro was part of Evolution. He knew that despite how everyone denied it.

"What?" Roman asked turning his attention to Dean.

"He got some text." Apparently, Dean had been the only one to notice.

"Could have been anything." Seth said.

Someone cleared their throat. They looked up to see John Bradshaw Layfield standing there with a nervous smile on his face. "Am I interrupting?" he asked.

"What's he doing here," Dean demanded. He may not know what was going on, but he did know that JBL had a part in Bo Dallas breaking his ankle at the Performance Center a few months ago. Though supposedly that was over a year ago. He didn't understand what was going on.

Dean also knew that the Texan had been fired by WWE and Dean had taken over as commentator for a short while. Then everything went crazy when Seth joined the Wyatts, they ran to Hawaii, and then Dean was brought back to the main land by Evolution.

Dean went up to JBL and punched him straight in the face. JBL wiped his lip checking for blood.

"Dean!" Shane said getting between the two men. "He's the new Smackdown General Manager."

"What?!" Everyone else yelled.

"Are you serious?" Seth asked. "After all he did?"

"What's it to you Rollins," JBL asked not taking his eyes off of Dean. "You don't even work here."

Dean looked at Roman and Seth in confusion. Last, he remembered Seth and he had been forced back into WWE when Hunter purchased their contracts back from Ring of Honor.

"Shane, you can't be serious," Roman said.

"Look I don't know all that's happened while I was gone, but Dean and JBL will only have interaction at PPVs."

"Why would I have any interaction? I don't want to work here." Dean said crossing his arms over his chest.

"Dean there you are," Renee said walking up to them. She had a microphone in hand but there was no cameraman with them. "I'm so glad to hear you're going to be on the main roster again." She gave him a hug.

Dean stared at the blonde in shock. She was pretty but he had no clue who she was.

"Renee," Roman said interfering before Dean could say anything. "Dean doesn't remember anything after 2014."

"You don't?" she asked in shock. She knew Dean had forgotten 2014, but suddenly he didn't remember another year? She wished someone would tell her what was going on. She remembered after meeting Dean, Cesaro had talked to her about how Dean had amnesia, and no one was to talk to him about 2014 as the doctor told them that he should be allowed to remember things without prompting. They figured his mind was trying to keep him from remembering the year for some traumatic experience.

"I'm Renee Young," she said after a moment. "I'm your girlfriend. We've been dating the last few months."

"Okay that works," Dean said with a smile. "But what is going on?"

Roman, Seth, AJ, and Punk exchanged looks.

"Why don't you use my office to discuss this?" Shane suggested. "I'll take over the rest of the show."

DDD

Notes: Things get rough next chapter when they finally tell Dean somethings. Dean gets to tell Seth something that Seth's not going to want to hear as well.


	19. Things go from Bad to Worse

Notes: Sorry for the delay in updating this story.

Dean reluctantly followed Roman, Seth, Punk, and AJ Lee to the office. AJ Styles walked away not wanting to be involved with this. Shane left saying he wanted to give them some privacy.

"What is going on?" Dean asked as soon as the door was closed.

"It's February of 2016," Seth said. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his cellphone. He held it up so that Dean could see the date.

"Why don't I remember the past year?" Dean asked. He was so confused. Last thing he remembered was staying at the Styles' home.

Roman cleared his throat before saying, "Wyatt removed 2014 from your memory. Apparently, he decided to give it back and remove everything after the memories were removed."

"Why?"

"It was an agreement between us, the Wyatts and Evolution," Seth said. "We had to disband and Bray would remove 2014 from your memory. Evolution isn't a group either. Triple H left the company and Batista went to Hollywood."

"Why did you agree to have my memories erased?" Dean demanded as his temper rose.

"You weren't dealing with 2014. We thought it would be best to make you forget it."

"I was dealing with it fine!" he said. "You guys were the ones who dragged me back to WWE. I didn't want to work there anymore."

"You weren't dealing with it," Seth said. "You won't even talk about it."

"I won't talk about it?" Dean said. "What about you Seth? Do you remember what you did in Philadelphia, because I sure do! They didn't take that away."

Roman looked from Dean to Seth in confusion. He couldn't help but think about the conversation he had had with Cesaro in the locker room after Seth and Punk had left.

" _What is your interest in Dean?"_

" _At least I care about what happens to him. You guys dropped him as soon as his memories were removed."_

" _You are part of the reason they had to be removed!" Roman fired back glaring at the Swiss._

" _I know what I have done Roman. I didn't do more than hold Dean down, or in one case broke his arm. I've been trying to make up for what I didn't do. Seth probably doesn't even remember Philadelphia. I wonder just how long he's hated Dean."_

Before he could even reply, he heard Here Comes the Money playing and left the locker room. He wanted to watch the back to make sure no one attacked Dean in the ring. He never saw Wyatt enter the building much less the ring as a security guard.

It suddenly dawned on Roman what both Dean and Cesaro were talking about.

Dean just walked out of the locker room.

Seth sat down hard on a bench. Roman left the locker room to make sure Dean was okay.

As he left, he heard a familiar entrance song start to be played in the arena. All thoughts of Dean left his mind as he rushed to the entrance to ringside and saw that Bray, Rowan, Harper, and a man he'd never seen before entered the ring. he wondered if it was the man who attacked Dean and Joey in Florida. he seemed to fit the description.

He didn't wait until Bray started to speak he charged to the ring. He knew he was outnumbered, but he didn't care. He stepped into the ring and Bray held up a hand to stop his followers from attacking Roman. Roman heard Bray say, "let him speak."

Roman picked up the microphone that JoJo handed him. "What are you doing here?" He demanded.

Bray chose not to speak into a microphone so no one in the arena except the men in the ring could hear him. "You challenged me a couple of weeks ago. I am here. I even brought the old Dean back. You broke our little agreement first so I decided I shouldn't have to uphold my side." He raised the microphone up and looked into the camera before saying,

"Come home Seth. You're always welcome."

The lights went out.

When they came back on, Roman was left alone in the ring.

DDD

Notes: Sorry for the short chapter. This will get someone's attention. Three groups are going to hash things out once and for all.


End file.
